May 22, 1455 · England Theater
May 22, 1455
The opening battle of the Wars of the Roses saw Yorkist forces under Richard, Duke of York, attack the royal procession through the streets of St Albans. The fighting was brief and vicious — Richard of York's ally Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, broke through the town's back lanes to outflank the Lancastrians. King Henry VI was captured, and the Duke of Somerset — York's chief enemy at court — was killed on the steps of a tavern.
Commanders